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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bat — the animal
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. file — a tool
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. file — a document
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — a division
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. snap — to click
  24. file — a line of people

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com